A divisive couple of words. To some, the highest point of human existence; the potential cure to all the world's ills. To others, simply life's window dressing - sometimes pleasant, largely peripheral and often annoying.

One of Catalyst’s core values is mission – helping people to be a blessing in every part of our society, using their skills and passions for the common good. That includes the arts – and while they clearly aren't the final answer, they have an importance that goes beyond making things look a bit prettier.

Whether you're an artist, an artistic enthusiast or someone who, to put it bluntly, have never really 'got' art, the arts or artists, this short video may be of help to you. It was recorded at a recent gathering of about 40 artists from Catalyst churches in Birmingham, and in it I suggest why the arts should be important to us as Christians.

If you'd like to make this a little more practical, Sputnik are putting on another art project, in collaboration with the Catalyst Festival that you can get involved with. If you're a visual artist, a musician or a writer, and would like to see your work exhibited at the festival and then in three public exhibitions throughout the rest of the year (in Birmingham, Coventry and South East London) then click here, and get creating.

Hope Church Bedlington is a growing church family in Bedlington, a town of about 10,000 people in South East Northumberland.

Up until the start of this year we were known as County Church Northumberland. County Church’s story started in 2003 when a group of people from City Church Newcastle, joined by others who moved up from the south of England, started meeting together to pray and dream about planting churches throughout the County of Northumberland. The church officially launched in 2007 and we have seen God do many wonderful things since then, experiencing all the highs (and lows!) involved with seeing a new church established.

Perhaps one of the most significant things we have been involved with is our Community Help Hub project.

In 2010 the church opened the Community Help Hub in Bedlington. This is a social action project we run from a shop front on the high street that aims to assist people searching for jobs and benefits by providing free internet, computer and telephone use. Long-term unemployment is a major issue in post-industrial Northumberland and the Hub has become a vital resource and source of hope for many. A team of volunteers from the church run the Hub and provide advice and assistance were required, for instance helping users with their job searches and writing CVs. For us, the Hub is so much more than simply a service we are providing. It is a place we can offer people dignity and hope, a way to reflect the love of God to our community, and a means by which we can build relationships with people.

So why have we changed our name to Hope Church Bedlington? Over the last few years God has been speaking to us about our vision. We have realised that if we are going to have a meaningful impact for the Kingdom of God and not stretch ourselves too thinly we need to focus on a specific location rather than having a broad focus on the whole County. Our long-term vision, to see churches established throughout Northumberland, remains. But in order to take steps towards that big vision we are now focussing on building a strong base church here in Bedlington from which we can one day plant outwards from a position of strength.

As we began to focus on Bedlington we also felt God was speaking to us about the kind of community he wanted us to be – a community of hope. We want to bring hope to the people around us and point them towards the ultimate hope found in the Gospel and the person of Jesus.

Changing the name in itself isn’t the most important thing. But it has been a significant moment for us as a church as we have focussed on Bedlington and felt a fresh sense of God’s calling to mission and adventure. We believe we are entering into a new season as a church family and are excited about all that God is going to do in and through us in the days to come.

Original Image: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Corniche_Beirut#mediaviewer/File:Corniche_beirut_5.jpg

There is hardly a day that passes that the Middle East is not in the news, with many of the stories involving political, religious or ethnic strife and difficulty. But this is only part of the story. God is working in this region. In the middle of what looks like despair many are learning and experiencing the good news of Jesus.

We will hear some of the stories of what God is doing from people living there. We will hear about the challenges and how we can pray, and we will learn about opportunities to get involved. As well as presentations about the region and what is happening, we will worship and pray for the Middle East. There will also be opportunities to ask questions and network with others.

The day is for anyone interested in praying for this important region, people and churches who want to get involved, and people who are considering living there to help make Jesus known.

To register, fill in the form on this page, or call the Churchcentral office on 0121 448 2520. Refreshments will be provided but please bring your own lunch.

‘Our church is about touching lives and seeing those sparks fly.’ - Martin Bull (lead elder of The Well Church, Loughborough) at our first prayer meeting of 2015.

In January one of our members shared that it was her 70th spiritual birthday. She was crying with gratitude as she told us of God’s incredible faithfulness throughout her life. At the start of this New Year it is so good to remember all that the Lord has done among us.

Our church has seen a lot of changes over the past few years: we have moved buildings a couple of times, welcomed lots of new members, and sent many out as God has called them to new places. We have seen people added to the Kingdom of God and baptised, prayers have been answered and we’ve walked with one another through difficult times of loss and hardship. Through it all God has demonstrated his goodness and grace to us and we are amazed (yet again) by his faithfulness.

Loughborough is a vibrant university town, which means we get to welcome lots of new faces each October as the academic year begins. There is a constant turnover of people as our students come and go, and we feel that part of our calling as a church is to welcome them into our family - building them up and then sending them out as God leads them. Our vision is to build a significant church here in Loughborough that reaches out to all and sees many lives transformed for the sake of God’s Kingdom. We love being family together and working with other churches in the town through Loughborough Churches Partnership.

Last year we had the joy of seeing three people become Christians. One of these was a lady from Asia who contacted our church office wanting to know more about Christianity. She joined our Language School (for women from other nations who want to learn English) and later went on an Alpha course and gave her life to Jesus! It was a privilege to be a part of her journey and see her faith grow before sending her back to her home nation with our prayers and support. She is now a light for Christ among her family and friends there.

We have put on many outreach events, with a large proportion being run in Costa Coffee at the heart of the town centre, giving us an amazing opportunity to sow seeds in the community. We are so excited about what the Lord is doing through these events and hope to see many of the seeds sown beginning to take root throughout 2015 and beyond.

You can read more about our church here but hopefully this article gives you a flavour of what our family is about. We love being part of Catalyst, and have found that the annual festivals have really strengthened our community and family. We hope to see you there again this year!

Impact is our year-out to focus on God - involving a placement in a chuch, training covering theology, skills, leadership and character development, and the chance to go overseas. In this post, Ben from Emmanuel Church Oxford - one of our current students - explains how he found the recent training at Center Parcs with Impact students from across Newfrontiers.

Two weeks on from Impact’s Center Parcs training block, I am still living in the excitement and encouragement of all that took place. The event sounded attractive from the outset: five days in the beautiful Elvedon Forest, with ample time for worship, an impressive line-up of Newfrontiers speakers (Jez Field, Simon Holley, Wendy Mann, David Devenish, Andrew Wilson and Joel Virgo) and an even more impressive array of water-slides. Center Parcs met my expectations. In fact, it went over and above them.

Personal highlights were the successive, exhilarating experiences of God at work. He would make His presence known, it seemed, in each and every meeting. Within twenty-four hours, we were hearing stories of God’s grace that had arisen during the week: people had been set free from issues in their past, they had been healed of illnesses, and they had received the joy of knowing God as Father. Being surrounded by such faith-building stories and events, I couldn’t help but feel a fresh sense of confidence and of peace. Nobody could have denied that God was achieving great things in those meetings.

It was also, for me, a week of challenges. The Impact year is full-on – there is seldom time to reflect, to think about the bigger picture, and to evaluate the work to which you have given a year of your life. For myself and many others, the week at Center Parcs provided an opportunity to do all of these things, to learn and to grow – and I cannot imagine a better environment in which this could take place. Did I need prayer for something? There would be someone nearby who would happily provide. Did I need to talk to someone, to discuss what I felt God had put on my heart? I would immediately be supported by a group of friends, keen to listen.

As important as the above, our time at Center Parcs was fun – a crucial part of the Impact year. If you are the sort of person who enjoys spending good quality time with friends, a heated outdoor pool, and the occasional night in watching Disney’s Frozen (don’t pretend you don’t like it) – it’s definitely for you.